Rockets' Chris Paul to miss Game 6 vs. Warriors with right hamstring strain

SportsPulse: USA TODAY Sports' Sam Amick breaks down Game 5 of the Western Conference finals, where the Rockets took a 3-2 series lead on the Warriors that may have come at a big cost.
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Houston Rockets guard Chris Paul sits on the floor after being hurt during the second half in Game 5 against the Golden State Warriors.(Photo: David J. Phillip, AP)

HOUSTON — If the Houston Rockets are going to close out the Golden State Warriors in Game 6, they're going to have to do it without their future Hall of Fame point guard in tow.

Rockets guard Chris Paul will miss Saturday's game against the Golden State Warriors with a right hamstring strain, the team announced Friday morning. Paul had an MRI, but the results weren't shared publicly.

He will be re-evaluated once the team returns to Houston. Rockets coach Mike D'Antoni said he didn't know whether Paul would be available in the event of a Game 7.

"Obviously not something we wanted," D'Antoni said. "I hate it for him above all. He’s practically won us the last two games, but it’s a great opportunity for other guys. We have plenty to choose from, and we’ll be ready."

D'Antoni announced that Eric Gordon would start in Paul's place.

Paul suffered the injury on a floater in the lane with under a minute left and had to miss the final 22.4 seconds as the Rockets hung on for a 98-94 win to move within one win of the NBA Finals.

D'Antoni expressed concern over Paul's status during Thursday night's postgame press conference as did Gordon, who told USA TODAY Sports that playing without Paul would be a major loss.

"I really do just hope he’s ready for the next game," said Gordon, who had 24 points. "It will be tough (if he's not). He’s a major part of what we do. We’ll just see what happens. He couldn’t play. I just know that at the end of the day, we need him."